What Happened
An 83-year-old mother and her 66-year-old daughter were trying to make a left turn from Route 13 in Northampton County on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. As they made the maneuver, a car ran a red light at the intersection causing a T-bone collision. Side impact collisions are known as T-bone crashes or broadside accidents. Injuries sustained are often more serious because the sides of automobiles afford less protection.
Both women were knocked unconscious by the impact of the crash. The mother was transported to Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital on the Eastern Shore where she remained for 12 days. The daughter was airlifted from the accident scene to Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News. She remained at the hospital for nine days.
The mother required arm surgery. She suffered a fractured right arm and rib and suffered a concussion from the accident.
Her daughter sustained a fractured pelvis, arm and shoulder blade, as well as a subdural hematoma (brain bleed) as a result of this serious Eastern Shore T-bone crash.
The mother and daughter hired attorneys, John Cooper and Bill O’Mara of Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers, who filed a personal injury lawsuit in Northampton County Circuit Court. We worked on the case with co-counsel Ed Atkinson.
The defense team argued contributory negligence on behalf of the mother during the wreck. The daughter’s orthopedic injuries did not require surgery or significant ongoing medical care and no future medical expenses were claimed for these injuries.
The defendant could not contest the wreck caused the subdural hematoma which is a collection of blood between the covering of the brain (dura) and the surface of the brain caused by a head injury. Other traumatic brain injury events before and after the crash complicated the neurosurgical evidence. The insurance defense attorneys fought damages claimed for the daughter’s traumatic brain injury.
Outcome
An agreement was reached at a mediation just over five months before a trial date. The mother and daughter were awarded $1.15 million. The mother received $525,000 and the daughter $625,000. The settlement included special damages of $117,000 for the mother’s medical bills and $101,000 for the daughter’s medical bills.
